For nearly two years, travelers from all over the world have had to face numerous difficulties when crossing borders.
If you are traveling to the European Union, most countries accept a certificate of full vaccination as a means of exempting, for example, quarantine or pre-arrival testing. Remember, however, that in times of a pandemic, regulations change very quickly and it is worth getting acquainted with the currently applicable rules for entering the territory of individual countries of the European Union before arrival. Each country decides on its own on the conditions of entry. However, the vaccines authorized in the European Union are common.
To date, the European Commission has issued five conditional marketing authorizations for vaccines developed by BioNTech / Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Janssen Pharmaceutica NV and Novavax. These vaccines have been positively assessed for efficacy and safety by the European Medicines Agency (EMA). EMA is currently evaluating several other vaccines.
Currently, the following are authorized for trading in the European Union:
• An mRNA vaccine called Comirnaty (BNT162b2) from Pfizer and BioNTech. The vaccine has been authorized throughout the European Union under the conditional admission procedure (European Commission decision of 21/12/2020). The vaccine protects against the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
• An mRNA vaccine called Spikevax (mRNA 1273) from Moderna. The vaccine has been authorized throughout the European Union under the conditional admission procedure (European Commission decision of 06/01/2021). The vaccine protects against the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
• AstraZeneca vector vaccine called Vaxzevria (ChAdOx1 nCoV-19). The vaccine has been authorized throughout the European Union under the conditional admission procedure (European Commission decision of 29/01/2021). The vaccine protects against the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
• COVID-19 Vaccine Janssen vector vaccine (Ad26.COV.2-S). The vaccine has been authorized throughout the European Union under the conditional admission procedure (European Commission decision of 11/03/2021). The vaccine protects against the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus.
• A Novavax subunit vaccine called Nuvaxovid (NVX-CoV2373). The vaccine has been authorized throughout the European Union under the conditional admission procedure (European Commission decision of 20/12/2021). The vaccine protects against the symptoms of COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus
European Medicines Agencyconducts a rolling review procedure for 4 COVID-19 vaccines:
If you travel to Poland, which belongs to the European Union, it is worth getting acquainted with the information of the National Institute of Public Health, which publishes the “List of COVID-19 vaccine equivalents admitted to the market in the territory of the Republic of Poland”
List of COVID-19 vaccine equivalents recognized by Poland as of October 29, 2021
This list does not include vaccines authorized in Poland and in the European Union. This is a list of vaccines used in non-EU countries that have been recognized as equivalent, and thus people vaccinated with these vaccines outside Poland can be treated as people immunized against Covid-19 at a level similar to those vaccinated with vaccines approved for use in the EU.